Carl Dean, Dolly Parton’s husband of nearly 60 years, passed away on Monday at the age of 82 in Nashville, Tennessee. Dean, who lived a life out of the public eye, was known for inspiring Parton’s famous song “Jolene.” His death was confirmed in a statement provided by Parton’s publicist. Dean will be laid to rest in a private ceremony, attended only by immediate family.
In her statement, Parton expressed her grief, saying, “Carl and I spent many wonderful years together. Words can’t do justice to the love we shared for over 60 years. Thank you for your prayers and sympathy.” The family has requested privacy, and the cause of death has not been disclosed.
Parton first met Dean outside the Wishy Washy Laundromat when she moved to Nashville at 18. She recalls being surprised that he looked at her face while speaking to her, which she found rare at the time. Two years later, they married on Memorial Day, May 30, 1966, in a small ceremony in Ringgold, Georgia.
Dean, a businessman who owned an asphalt-paving company in Nashville, was born to Virginia “Ginny” Bates Dean and Edgar “Ed” Henry Dean. Parton affectionately called his mother “Mama Dean.” Dean is survived by Parton and his siblings, Sandra and Donnie.
He was the inspiration behind Parton’s hit song “Jolene,” which she explained in a 2008 interview with NPR. The song was inspired by a flirtatious bank teller who took a shine to Dean, and the playful dynamic it created between them. Parton noted that it was a lighthearted, innocent song despite its intense-sounding title.
For many years, Parton and Dean kept their relationship out of the public eye. In 1984, Parton joked that some people didn’t believe Carl even existed. “A lot of people say there’s no Carl Dean, that he’s just somebody I made up to keep other people off me,” she said at the time.
In 2023, Parton revealed that Dean was one of the inspirations behind her 2023 “Rockstar” album. She shared that he was a big fan of rock music and had a particular fondness for her song “My Blue Tears.” She also included some of his favorite rock songs, such as Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Free Bird” and Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven.”